Category: soups

A Harvest Story + Fresh Bean Soup

~ Sophie ~ 3 Comments

I was somewhere around 9 years and we had a garden…gardens. If you are Ugandan, you know that almost all homes have two (…or more) gardens. The backyard garden which is mainly used to grow simple foods like vegetables, herbs, and some two or four maize plants thrown in. One or two overgrown pumpkin vines snaking their way around a handful of scattered bean plants. They are small but enough.

Then there is the large garden or farm or a shamba if you may. One that is used to grow plants at a larger scale where there is almost a half to an acre (or more) of beautiful maize plants basking in the sunshine and fully radiant. Under the shade of those maize plants will be different kinds of beans growing and thriving at that. A farm so large that either the whole family(from parents to toddlers) spends endless days weeding then harvesting when it is time or where extra hands in addition to the whole family are hired to help out.

It is times like these that are still vivid in my mind. The harvest. Where we woke early, took heavy breakfast and got down to harvesting beans among many other foods. It was (and still is) hard work, but what makes it all worth it is the final aroma of boiling fresh beans. After they have been uprooted, picked from their branches and shelled, we would put a large pot of these beans on fire. There is something magical about eating food straight from the garden and when my cousin shared her first harvest with us, we were so excited beyond words.

Although it is not officially harvest season, people have started harvesting and it is wonderful. One thing with fresh food is that it does not require a ton of condiments. By simply boiling fresh beans with onions, tomatoes and some salt, you will have the most fragrant, delicious and healthy soup in no time.

What you will need:

3 C. Fresh beans

1 Large tomato, chopped

3 Small red onions, chopped

½ Tbsp. Ginger grated

Salt and pepper to taste

½ Tbsp. Oil

Observations:

If you want your dish soupy, add more water. While the beans boil, the water may reduce. Keep replacing the water to retain the aromatic soup

Method

Wash fresh beans and place them in a saucepan. Add enough water to cover the beans by about 2-3 inches.  Place pan on high heat. Let the beans boil. When the beans start turning a grey color, add ginger, onions, tomatoes, salt, pepper, and oil. Cover the pan and let the beans continue cooking. Once the beans start releasing an aroma and have softened, reduce the fire and let the stew simmer on low heat for about 10 minutes. Remove from fire and serve hot.

🙂

Sophie

Black Bean Stew

~ Sophie ~ 6 Comments

Beans are synonymous with Uganda, (among many other foods) in a good way that is. You wont spend a month (or less than that really) without indulging in bean stew or soup. Whats baffling though is the many kinds (types) of beans there are. My grandmother knows all names in the local dialect. Sometimes she would ask “what beans are these?” and I, not knowing what to say, would simply say “err…beans” and then she would insist what type they are and I would say I don’t know. She would then tell me the names and how they are grown and in what season and place they thrive best. As much as we identify with beans, they are cooked differently in every region and according to personal preferences. I have encountered the plain boiled, the stewed, the ones mixed with vegetables, the dry fried…the list goes on. I thought it would be great to share how we cook beans here. I can’t say it is a constant recipe because how the stew turns out will depend on whats available (picture a moment where you are ready to cook beans until you realize you have no tomatoes!! It has happened before).

RECIPE COMING SOON

 

🙂

Sophie

Stir-Fry Green Beans with Roast Peanuts

~ Sophie ~ 1 Comment

October is upon us people and with everything around green, it’s not hard to find green beans at the market stalls. Beans are a common side dish but eating them in their premature stage is not usual in Uganda. In fact, after much thought, I have come to realize that I’ve not seen a fellow Ugandan buying green beans from the market ( but maybe it is me only…hmm). The day brought it’s self when there were green beans, roasted peanuts, purple onions, carrots, garlic, and a plentiful supply of spring onions from the garden. So we were like, why not fusion?! Drawing inspiration from African cuisine and East Asian cuisine we developed the stir-fry green beans with roasted peanuts recipe; really easy to pull together. The awesomeness of still crisp green beans and slightly sweet carrot, followed by the roasted peanut fried in garlic, and occasionally biting into a sliced, nearly tender, purple onion or a long-cut spring onion… Perfected with white rice.

What you’ll need:

DSC_0033 - Copy Method

First off, on high heat, pour three tablespoons (or an equivalent) of cooking oil in a pan and add salt. After the oil has heated up, add the garlic and let it brown. Next add the crushed peanuts, stirring briskly. Next add the green beans and keep stirring. After a minute, add the spring onions. Next add the carrots and keep stirring for 5 minutes to make sure everything cooks evenly. After add the onions and  sprinkle some sugar then continue stirring for two more minutes. Remove from fire and let cool. Serve with rice (or just eat them like that ha! I can do that!).

So what new thing are you trying this month? Let me know in the comments below.

🙂

Sophie